Harare – Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe‘s recent call for his supporters to “kick out” all remaining white commercial farmers from their properties has triggered a new wave of land invasions in the southern African country.

Following the nonagenarian’s statement, a top cleric, Trevor Manhanga, with links to the ruling Zanu-PF party, has been accused by villagers of grabbing land in Manicaland, ahead of Mugabe’s visit to the province on Friday.

Manhanga, an Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe bishop, was on Tuesday dragged to the High Court by villagers from the Makoni district of Manicaland, about 30km west of Rusape town.

The villagers accused the clergyman of grabbing Lesbury Farm, owned by Robert Smart, in order to erect a church on shrines that the villagers said were sacred, court papers showed.

The court papers also showed that Land Minister Douglas Mombeshora had given Manhanga permission to occupy the land, despite a report – compiled by the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe – showing that the Machinya Hills, located on the property, had archaeological sites that could attract tourists.

Gunshots

The villagers, led by Peter Tandi, argued that the archeological sites were protected in terms of the country’s laws, including the national constitution, that protect cultural rights. The villagers said that they performed their cultural rituals at the Machinya Hills on a yearly basis, with financial support from Smart.

Tandi and others were now seeking an interdict against the land minister – as well as Manhanga, David Nyakonda and William Samhungu (the incumbent chief) – who were given official letters to occupy the disputed property.

Tandi said he had approached Vice President Phelekezela Mphoko, with a view to stopping Manhanga from grabbing the farm, but to no avail.

“Manhanga also has the support of [Manicaland Provincial Affairs Minister] Mandi Chimene to grab the property,” said Tandi.

Meanwhile, some workers at the farm accused Manhanga of roping in Rusape police officers to “terrorise” Smart, resulting in the police firing gunshots to disperse angry villagers who had gathered at the property in support of the white commercial farmer.

“The police forced open a safe that contained Smart’s money and went away with $75 000 meant for the payment of workers’ salaries,” claimed a source at the farm.

COMMENTS

This sadness of this story reminds me of the brilliant British born Nigerian author Habeeb Akande when he said, “The difference between greed and ambition is a greedy person desires things he isn’t prepared to work for.”

I am deeply saddened by this act of ‘terrorism’. When will the white people have peace in Zimbabwe. Live Mr Smart alone, even the great support of the villages did not deter you. And the hungry police, fuelling corruption with looting….

Most appalling is having a 93-yr old president inciting gullible villagers to go about committing crime against peace-loving citizens. Surely, if Mugabe wants anyone’s land he can take it using legal channels or even using his partisan police, soldiers and CIO to do the dirty work for him – as he is already busy doing in Mazoe where black people are being disposed of their land for takeover by none other than Mugabe himself. Why abuse the poor people to commit crimes or even shed innocent blood only for Mugabe to turn on the same people again & forcefully take way the same land they would have been incited to grab by force from others? Is it something to do with this man’s spiritual rituals or what? Why is that he prefers chaos or even shedding of blood in situations he can achieve whatever he wants, legally or illegally, without chaos or any physical harm inflicted on any one? Surely, even the gullible villagers need to start asking such simple questions.

Mugabe has a whole Ministry, whose sole mandate is simply writing letters to any farm-owner informing him/her that the government has taken over your farm can you vacate on such a date and that goes. So, I a country where one’s word is the supreme law why would the same guy want to incite villagers really? nxaaaaaaa!